


As Long As You're There

by SpiritMuse



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Angst, Gen, hand holding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-30
Updated: 2017-09-30
Packaged: 2019-01-07 07:25:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12228294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpiritMuse/pseuds/SpiritMuse
Summary: Three times when Ignis holds Noctis' hand, and one time when Noctis holds Ignis'.





	As Long As You're There

They're on one of their clandestine nightly excursions. It's darker than any other night. No moon, no stars.

Suddenly, the lights go out and they're left in deep darkness. A gasp next to him, a small hand finds his. Clings tightly.

"Are you afraid?" he asks.

"No," comes the reply in a tremulous voice, "I just like holding your hand."

"I see," he says, but he knows better.

"I'm not afraid," Noct insists, "not as long as you're here."

  


* * *

  


Within a single night, their whole world has turned upside down. Noct wanted to go back, to see it with his own eyes. So he drives them there.

They fight their way past the barricade, up to the overlook that will allow them to see the city. But before they get there, Noct stops.

"What's wrong?" he asks.

Noct doesn't respond. He steps closer, so that only the two of them can hear.

"Are you afraid?"

"No," Noct says, and holds onto his hand, "not as long as you're here."

  


* * *

  


They stand in the heat of Titan's crater, the astral defeated. They're sore and exhausted. They watch as the Niflheim airship lands before them, and a man they don't trust offers them help.

Gladio steps in front of them, as is his job. So does Prompto, for friendship.

Behind them, a hand briefly finds his. He gives it a squeeze before it falls away again. Noctis doesn't look at him, but he still hears the words the prince doesn't say out loud.

_I'm not afraid as long as you're here._

  


* * *

  


The world is dark. Mostly. He can still see some light, but no more than that. At first he panics, then he worries, then he accepts and tries to move forward.

He wants to stay with them. As long as he can. As long as he doesn't slow them down. His hand reaches out, searching in the dark. It finds another, and holds on tightly.

"Are you afraid?" Noct asks him.

He considers. The hand squeezes back gently.

"No," he decides, "not as long as you're here."

  


* * *

  


He sees even less than before. Not because his vision has gotten worse, but because there's simply no light left to see in the endless night.

The people are afraid. They cling to each other for comfort. But he has no one near to cling to. The three of them have spread out, each putting their talents to use where they're most needed. 

But he's not afraid. He reaches out and feels it right there. The magic. Noctis.

_I'm not afraid as long as you're there._

  


* * *

  


He sees the light. Morning has come. The world comes back to life. Slowly, everything is rebuilt.

But traces of the darkness remain in his mind. The losses. The sacrifices. He will never forget them. 

Sometimes he wakes in the middle of the night, shaking. Tears on his pillow. The darkness suffocating.

He reaches out and feels it still. In his heart. And slowly he calms.

_I'm not afraid as long as you're there._

**Author's Note:**

> And two times when Ignis has no hand to hold.


End file.
